capicitor difference

[Bilsdragon]

What's the difference between a .022uf capacitor and a .047uf capacitor tone wise? I'm wiring a strat with single coils that are 8k bridge, 5.5k mid, and 5.2k neck. I'm just wondering which cap to use.

[sumitomo]

Hey Bil I think the only way that YOU will know is to try them both,there is also alot on vid out there check out some vids on MOJO TONE.I had to try out both and 250k and 500k pots as well.Sumi

[Bilsdragon]

Dolt!!! I've had that pick guard off three times already. I was hoping the next was the last. LOL (my switch was touching the shielding and grounding out making the pick-ups not work properly)



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[Commodore 64***]

I *think* in your case, using a higher capacitance cap will take out some of the highs.

[Bloozcat]

It depends upon how you have the guitar wired to some extent.

If it's wired in stock Strat configuration, the cap is soldered to both tone controls for the neck and the middle pickups. Since they're both in the low end of vintage resistance range, .022uf, .033uf, or possibly .047uf will work. I'd probably opt for .022uf unless it sounded too bright.

The volume pot may be a different matter. 8.0k-ohm is quite overwound for a single coil pickup. That's in humbucker resistance territory. But resistance alone doesn't dictate a swich from 250k to a 500k pot, it's still a single coil. When I use overwound single coils I opt for 300k pots that actually read @ 300k or slightly higher. I've found that the pickups don't sound muddy that way and even retain a little bit of sparkle that's attenuated with overwound pickups and 250k pots (many of which don't read a full 250k).

If your Strat is wired with the tone control switched from the middle pickup to the bridge pickup leaving the middle "open" (my prefered wiring), then I'd use a .022uf cap for the neck tone, and a .01uf or .015uf cap for the bridge tone.

There are lots of options....

[Bilsdragon]

Thanks Blooz. I want it wired for the bridge to have tone and the mid to be open like you said. Hmm, I'll have to look to see how to use both caps since i originally had the two tones wired together like the mexi strat with the cap on the bridge tone then jumpered over to the neck tone.

[Bloozcat]

Thanks Blooz. I want it wired for the bridge to have tone and the mid to be open like you said. Hmm, I'll have to look to see how to use both caps since i originally had the two tones wired together like the mexi strat with the cap on the bridge tone then jumpered over to the neck tone.

That's pretty easy. First you move the tone wire on the 5-way switch from the middle pickup lug to the bridge pickup lug. Then you remove the wire that connects (jumpers) the lower tone pot (formerly the middle tone pot, now the bridge tone pot). The upper tone pot (neck) still has it's capacitor connected from the outside lug to ground as before. On the lower tone pot (now the bridge tone pot), solder one end of the new capacitor to the lug where the jumper wire had been, and the other end to the top of the pot (ground).

You can experiment with different caps now instead of using a compromise value like .022uf. Maybe a .010uf or .015uf for the neck, and maybe a .047uf or a .033uf for the bridge.

This diagram will help you visualize the instructions:

[Bilsdragon]

Blooz, I cannot view the diagram here at work, but I get what you are saying. I read some stuff Dirk Wacker wrote on the Premier guitar website. I will probably use example 2 without the mid/neck jumper so that I have bridge tone. The pics are in the article I linked. I may just try the values you listed to see how it sounds. Thanks, Bill

https://www.premierguitar.com/Magazi...Split_Mod.aspx

[Bloozcat]

Blooz, I cannot view the diagram here at work, but I get what you are saying. I read some stuff Dirk Wacker wrote on the Premier guitar website. I will probably use example 2 without the mid/neck jumper so that I have bridge tone. The pics are in the article I linked. I may just try the values you listed to see how it sounds. Thanks, Bill

https://www.premierguitar.com/Magazi...Split_Mod.aspx

When I first tried the open/no tone middle pickup, I was surprised at how good it made the pickup sound. I had always felt that the middle pickup alone wasn't of much use, but what a difference wide open! It gets a nice snarl to it and almost a deeper, richer, quack tone as well. I find myself using it for crunchy rhythms all the time now.

That diagram on Premier Guitar looks good. Slightly different than what I described, but a little easier to follow.

[sumitomo]

Hey guys here's more than you wanted to know www.singlecoil.com Sumi

[Bloozcat]

Hey guys here's more than you wanted to know www.singlecoil.com Sumi

That is a great site, sumitomo. I haven't gone too it in a while, glad you brought it up!

[Bilsdragon]

Blooz, Check this out. It's hard to see but those are the GFS Boston Blues pups in there. I did the two cap wiring like we talked about. I used a 22 on the neck and a 47 on the bridge. They are Sprague orange drops. This thing snarls. The pick-ups are quite hot so the 250k volume doesn't turn the sound completely off on the bridge, but it does make for some interesting tonal changes by using combos of the volume and tone. My fingers hurt so I must be diggin it. Thanks for the tips everybody.



You can see large size by looking at my pics hosted here.

[Bloozcat]

Cool, Bilsdragon!

That's the fun of modding, when you first crank the finished product up and get that WOW! moment and the big grin....